Randy Sartin / Associated Press
At the University of Tennessee, a Big Mac apparently came with a big stack.
Dan Patrick said Tuesday in The Dan Patrick Show that assistant coaches on the Volunteers football team put money in McDonald’s bags and hand them over to recruits during visits:
“You literally had baggies. They put the money in McDonald’s bags and handed it to recruits. My source said they were so in your face with this – they weren’t even trying to hide it. And that’s when my source said,” Tennessee was sloppy. Georgia was sloppy. “But there was no word about the NCAA looking at Georgia. But Tennessee, they became sloppy and were handing out money in McDonald’s bags.”
Tennessee fired coach Jeremy Pruitt on Monday after an internal investigation found repeated recruitment violations. Chancellor of Donde Plowman University said the scope of the investigation, while ongoing, is “surprising”:
“For the time being, I can say this: the information provided today indicates a significant number of serious violations of NCAA rules. While we have no choice but to continue to ask for your patience while the University and NCAA investigate, the personal actions we are taking announcing today are an indication of the seriousness of what we’ve discovered.
“What is surprising is the number of violations and their efforts to conceal the crime.”
Pruitt, a former defensive coordinator in the state of Florida, Georgia and Alabama, was 16 to 19 in three seasons with the volunteers. The university fired him for cause, which means he won’t have to pay for his acquisition. Pruitt was under contract until the 2025 season and is expected to challenge Tennessee’s court decision.
Kevin Steele will serve as Tennessee’s interim head coach while the university conducts a search. In a letter to Pruitt, the school says it expects the investigation to find Level I and / or Level II violations of NCAA rules.
The university also fired internal linebacker coach Brian Niedermeyer, external linebacker coach Shelton Felton, quality assurance coach Larry Harold, player team director Danny Stiff, assistant team player director JT Hill, directors football recruiting Rachel Bell and Bethany Gunn and assistant directors recruiting Chantryce Boone and Taylar Hooker.